Once upon a time, there was once a hospital PPP that had every reason to implode. The private partner was a joint venture between a French construction giant, an Aussie FM firm, and a Spanish bank that hadn’t read the contract. What could get wrong? The public sector? A government department that changed name three times during procurement. Even the Independent Certifier was late to its own appointment. All the right mindset, bricks, etc. seem to be there… and of course… the damn thing...
1 day ago • 1 min read
Your wealth adventure will be complicated by a new awareness that you are short on skills. Early on, I realized how little I knew about how to connect with people, network, communicate, build rapport, and how little confidence I had. I didn’t know how to sell, market, promote, build value, negotiate, close deals, or follow up customers. I couldn’t handle disappointment and rejection and I wasn’t even dealing with money yet. ------- Grant Cardone For those that want to start your house by the...
3 days ago • 1 min read
Dear project managers and executivesYou are not paid to referee ego wars.You are paid to protect outcomes. I have seen this many times. And doubts and concerns freeze you like a bunny looking at the two lights of the car moving to you. Look. If you're witnessing a standoff between two inflated egos, do everyone a favor:Remove them both—or at least the one you can control. Will it feel disruptive? Yes.Expensive? Maybe.Unfair? Possibly. But trust me... it’s a bargain compared to the cost of...
4 days ago • 1 min read
You know that working 8 hours a day for over 40 years straight, just to retire and finally enjoy “the life of your dreams” in the last stage of your life has never been my cup of tea. My goal is not the Lambo. It’s not drinking overpriced wine… and obviously not New Zealand red wines. I just want to own my time. That’s it. Some people call this financial freedom. You know that I read about the subject. Forums, blogs, books, and… from time to time I did it on social media. Yes… it was a time...
5 days ago • 1 min read
When I had no money, I spent my days around people who criticized others. Now that I have a little money, all I hear when someone talks about others is: “I love that guy,” “He’s brilliant,” “What a machine”, “Qué huevos tiene”, etc. Failures focus on hating. Successful people focus on admiring—and finding people worth admiring. Failures assume malice. Successful people assume kindness. Failures obsess over what they don’t like. Successful people are blind to what they don’t like. Failures...
6 days ago • 1 min read
“When you understand that every opinion is a vision loaded with personal history, you will begin to understand that all judgment is a confession.” – Nikola Tesla Note that sentence. Do it by hand. Yes, in a piece of paper. Have it next to your screen, desk, or whatever. Read it every day. and every time a stupid shows you his stupidity through his month. If that sentence does not make you jump out of your chair to do something productive... you simply have no blood in your veins. That's all...
7 days ago • 1 min read
PPP = Prolonged, Painful, and Pointless. But not this time. Somehow, against all odds, cultures, and acronyms… The New Royal Adelaide Hospital in South Australia didn’t just avoid disaster — it delivered. Let me break it down for you: Australia’s most expensive hospital project at the time. $2.3 billion AUD. A maze of private, public, and clinical stakeholders. 800 beds. 40 operating theatres. 100% public access. The predictions? “Too complex.” “Healthcare PPPs always end in tears.” “Get...
8 days ago • 1 min read
It’s simple. I’ve shown you how smart people can make stupid mistakes. How costly they are. How amazingly common they are. The wrong team, the wrong assumptions, the wrong risks transferred. Simple. Foreseeable. Evitable. But… You see them over, and over again. You and I as taxpayers pay the price. And if you work in infrastructure… and you are in these “saraos” (projects), you can pay an even higher price. Endless nights without sleeping, hours and hours wasted in never-ending meetings,...
9 days ago • 1 min read
Let me tell you a bedtime story. It’s about a classic PPP project. However, it’s a bedtime story for the nightmares. It starts in Australia. Sunshine. Kangaroos. And a bunch of brilliant bureaucrats who thought they could outsmart the laws of project finance. The name? Airport Link Tunnel in Brisbane.The year? 2010.The cost? $4.8 billion AUD.The outcome? A flaming, billion-dollar disaster. You see, they had a vision. A tunnel linking Brisbane Airport with the city. As I said… A classic PPP....
10 days ago • 1 min read